Fate To Fake: Loved by the Fallen; Fated to Kill the Divine

He was a thief.

And this was the same.

Because controlling the stone wasn't about magic. It was about pressure, distance, timing, and accuracy. It was about playing with danger—like he always did.

He didn't learn it today.

He just adapted it.

After all... Leo had spent his whole life mastering the art of stealing.

And stealing needed the same things ruin stones demanded:

Timing... Precision.... Control.

And the only thing he needed to master now—was pressure.

And he even did that by himself!

Valra sighed softly, a mixture of exhaustion and disbelief slipping from her lips. "I cannot believe you're actually this good at it… Arrh!" she groaned, clutching her head as if in defeat.

But after a short pause, she smiled faintly, looking at him with a glint of mischief and admiration in her eyes. "You really are something… you know that?"

Her voice was quiet, almost lost in the weight of her breath. She muttered it more to herself than to him. Leo, standing just a few steps ahead, let out a soft chuckle. His body shook slightly as he giggled and shook his head, his gaze gently falling on her... on her clothes.

Valra noticed it. Her heart skipped as her cheeks suddenly turned pink. Her eyes narrowed in startled embarrassment. "W-What?" she stammered.

Leo tilted his head, humming thoughtfully, then nodded with a small smile... he wasn't an idiot to not notice her hard work.

"You look… really cute."

Valra's lips trembled as she tried not to grin. Her hand reached up, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "O-Oh, come on! You think flattery's gonna get you off the hook?" she huffed, pouting with irritation. "You almost hurt your hand, you kno—"

Before she could finish, Leo stepped closer. Too close.

Valra instinctively flinched, her breath catching in her throat. Her heart thudded.

Why was he looking at her like that?

Why did it feel like something unsaid was pressing against the silence?

Leo's eyes weren't on her clothes anymore... They were on her. His mind drifted.

He remembered… her face. That night, when she told him she loved him. Her voice trembling. Her eyes shimmering with tears, as if she had already seen the end coming.

Back then, when he was bleeding, broken, barely conscious... she had still looked at him with so much warmth, as if he was the only thing in the world that mattered. Even as death loomed over them both, she had held on... to him.

She didn't think of herself. She didn't cry for her own pain. She thought of him.

Even on the edge of death, she had whispered her love. And he… what had he ever given her?

"When you said… you love me…" he began, his voice low, almost hesitant. His throat tightened as the words scraped their way out.

"Honestly, I didn't know how to react. I mean… I know I've lost my past. My memories. My life before this… But when I saw your eyes that day… the pain, the way you looked at me… it was hurting me.

Why do you love me that much? I still don't understand… what did I ever do to deserve that?"

His voice cracked at the end, raw with vulnerability. He wasn't accusing her. He was genuinely asking.

Valra blinked. Her breath caught in her chest. Then slowly, she smiled.

"I… I honestly don't know why I l-love you so much either," she whispered, her voice trembling.

"But… whenever you're near me… something stirs in my heart. Like a push. A warmth.

That day, when you just kept running, pushing yourself harder and harder… it reminded me of myself. Of all the times I tried so hard… to prove something, to be seen, to not be second to everyone else."

She looked down, voice softening.

"I saw that in you. That same fire. That same desperation. And it frustrated me… because I thought, maybe, you were like me. Trying to prove yourself... to the world. To someone."

Then she lifted her head again and smiled weakly, eyes glassy with memory.

"But you weren't. You weren't trying to prove anything. You weren't chasing recognition.

You just wanted to make your father proud. Everything you did… it wasn't for you. It was for others. I saw it.

The difference between us... and the push that made me realise what I'm losing all this time.... And maybe… maybe that's what made me fall for you even harder."

Her voice cracked, and she clutched her chest.

"My heart aches when you're not here… and it still hurts even when you are.

Worried you will leave... me alone again.

I get nervous when you talk to me, my chest gets tight, m-my words stumble.

Maybe that's what love is, right? That strange mixture of pain and warmth?"

"…"

Leo was stunned. He had never heard love spoken like that.

Valra then smirked through her watery eyes, voice turning slightly teasing. "Also, if I may ask… why the hell did you save me back then? Huh?"

Leo blinked. Her question brought him back. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "I… I don't really know. Maybe it was guilt. Maybe I didn't want to regret anything. Or maybe..."

He trailed off.

"Love?"

She asked, softly, her voice trembling. Her eyes sparkled, hopeful, desperate. Her lips parted slightly, breath hitched.

Leo looked into her eyes.

Did he love her?

He didn't know... but... if he could say one thing to this girl—who was ready to give everything, ready to die for him, doing anything to protect him, following his actions even while losing everything.... and still accepting him without complaint... His greed, she didn't complain and...

Even accepted another woman beside him just to stay close...

Wasn't that what love looked like?

Did... any other woman do that for him?

He had seen women who wanted him for his strength, his body, his protection… but Valra just wanted his heart.

"...Yeah… maybe," he finally said, voice shaking with a quiet smile.

"!!!"

Valra's eyes widened. Her pupils dilated, her heart stopped for a beat.

Her lips parted in shock.

Then it hit her like a current!!

Her legs went weak. They buckled. Her breath left her lungs like a sharp gust, and tears welled in her eyes. The world spun. She didn't understand why—why her body wasn't listening—but Leo caught her just in time before she collapsed.

"W-What?" she gasped, blinking through the tears. Her hands gripped his arms. "Why... why are my legs…?"

Her voice cracked as her chest rose and fell in uneven rhythm. Her body trembled from a single sentence.

A simple word: Maybe.

He had finally seen her.

"I'm not who I used to be," Leo said softly, holding her gently. "I'm… someone else now. A new Leo. Would you still love me, even if I never remember who I was?"

His words trembled with something deeper than fear.

Valra stared at him, eyes glassy. Then, without hesitation, she shook her head. "If anything… I love you even more now, Leo. This version of you… this man who cares more, who tries more, who listens more… I love him."

Her fingers pressed against his chest.

"Whether you lost your memories or not… your soul hasn't changed. Your kindness, your fire, your awkwardness… they're all still here. Honestly, sometimes I wonder if you're even really suffering from amnesia or if you're just messing with me," she added with a teasing smile.

Leo chuckled, swallowing nervously. He didn't know how to answer that.

Valra continued, her voice growing steadier.

"Whatever the truth is… it doesn't matter to me. I don't care if you never remember. I just know this:

I really, really do love you, Leo."

Her voice dropped to a whisper.

"And I don't want to lose you."

She looked up at him with a smile that shone like a promise, like her heart had waited forever just to say it..... A smile that made his breath stop.

A smile... that achieved something more than happiness.

Leo stared down at her for a moment, stunned. Then, with a soft mutter under his breath, he leaned in, voice low and shaky, "Honestly… what am I going to do with you…"

as he saw her lips part... 'I think I should kiss now... right?', even though it was fast, but... maybe for her it may not.

He didn't think of much of a kiss after all, he lost his first kiss to someone he didn't even know and now... the situation was kind of romantic and her eyes aching for it so,

"Hmm~"

He kissed her lips.

Valra's eyes widened at the sudden warmth pressing against her mouth. Her whole body froze for a second, then melted. A single tear slipped down her cheek, steaming as it fell with heat, and her eyes fluttered shut. Her arms slowly reached around his neck, pulling him closer, holding on as if afraid he might disappear.

The kiss wasn't perfect, It wasn't practised.

It was messy, shaky, filled with so many emotions that words could never hold.

A kiss that wasn't just a kiss.

It carried her pain. Her fear. Her longing.... And his answer. His decision.

His promise.